Friend
by xLover's moonx
Summary: ONE-SHOT! He only wanted a friend. He only wanted to play with them. He only wanted not to be lonely anymore. But the kids always went running, screaming and shouting out "MONSTER". That is until one kid turned to him and smiled. The smile that made him happy. And said the seven words he'd been longing to hear. PLEASE R&R!


**Hey, this story is for Gaara. I've never read any fanfics about Gaara and probably never really will, but as I was watching some old episodes of 'Naruto' again I watched some episodes that had parts of Gaara's past in them. I felt really sorry for him when all the kids kept running away from him. When all he wanted was a friend. And I kept thinking 'I would be your friend' and I'm sure a lot of you would probably feel the same way. So I decided to write a fanfic about it, also I had to edit it because someone pointed out to me that it wasn't eight simple words but seven simple words. Oh great. No I can't count :p**

**WARNING!  
There will be a bit of violence however it is not that much and isn't greatly detailed.**

**Friend  
****He only wanted a friend. He only wanted to play with them. He only wanted not to be lonely anymore. But the kids always went running, screaming and shouting out "MONSTER". That is until one kid turned to him and smiled. The smile that made him happy. And said the seven words he'd been longing to hear.**

* * *

Under the scorching sun of the desert, in the land of wind, there's a village hidden in the sand. A teenage boy with striking red hair walked down one of the main streets. As he walked past the villagers some bowed but most waved to him politely. A sound suddenly caught his ears and he looked up. Coming straight towards him were a group of small kids. They were laughing and playing tag as they got underneath everyone's feet. He step a side just in time for them to go whizzing past. He watched them as they ran round a corner and out of site.

"Hey! Gaara!" Someone called to him and he turned around. His sister Temari and brother Kankuro stood behind him waving. As they walked over his sister carried on, "What ya doing?"

"Nothing." Gaara said in his usual emotionless voice.

"What were you staring at anyway?" Kankuro asked as he placed his arm around his younger brother's shoulders.

"Just some kids."

"Hey, didn't you have that friend when you were younger. What was her name?" Kankuro asked as he scratched his chin in thought. "Masami? Mayu? Mao? It was something along those lines."

"No I don't remember her name." Gaara replied.

Temari added with a shrugged of her shoulders, "Well, she moved away along time ago. Why don't we go and get some more training done before tea?"

Her and Kankuro walked away and started a new conversation.

Gaara looked up the sky to see no clouds in the midsummer sky. His lips tweaked into the tiniest of smiles as he thought of a day just like this day many years ago.

* * *

_The sound of a squeaking swing echoed around the playground. Sat on the swing was a small boy with red hair. His eyes were down cast to a small teddy bear in his hands. A few yards away a group of kids his age were kicking around a ball. They were smiling and laughing but completely ignoring the boy on the swing. None of them asked if he wanted to play with him, and when they cau__ght his gaze they would quickly look away again. One of the boys suddenly kicked the ball too hard and high and it went flying through the air. The group all stopped and stared up at it as it sailed through the air. They squinted as it flew past the sun and landed on the roof of a nearby building._

_The boy on the swing looked up as he heard loud groans and whines in annoyance. He saw the kids looking round for something they could use to get it down but with no such luck. Slow, he looked down at his hands then back up at the ball again._

_"I don't know any earth jutsus strong enough to get it down." One girl cried. _

_The kids stared hopelessly at the ball when, suddenly, it started to move. At first it wobbled but then it was hovering as if someone invisible was picking it up and lowering it down to them. But as it got closer they could see a small cloud of sand hovering underneath it. Then it slowly made it's way to the ground. They gasped in surprise and relief. Only it didn't touch the ground but instead landed in the red headed boy's hands. The cloud of sand retreated and the corners of the boys lips flicked up slightly. He looked pleased and then stared up at the group of kids. __However he didn't get the reaction he wanted. They looked at him wide eyed and in horror. Scared, they moved back slowly._

_"It's him." One boy said in a shaky voice._

_"It's Gaara." This time a girl said as she held her arms up in front of herself as if begging for mercy._

_"He's really creepy." Another boy stared down at him as if he was a piece of dirt._

_"R-r-r-run!" One of them suddenly said and every single one of them turned on their heels and sprinted as far away as they could._

_"Come on lets get out of here!" Their screams were heard loudly as they stumbled over their own feet in their rush to get away. There was a sudden pain to his chest that hurt him very much. He squeezed his eyes shut and started to shake. Gaara's smile dropped and so did his arms holding the ball up. The ball fell from his tiny hands and bounced away. Gaara hung his head and trudged back to his swing. They called him a monster but all their words still hurt just as much. He wanted nothing more than to curl up into a mothers arms and cry, like he had seen so many of the other kids do. But he had no one. Even his own family treated him like dirt. Each of their words were like an icy blade to his heart._

_"You should just ignore them." A sweet voice said behind him. Gaara looked behind him with sad eyes to see who wanted to run away or beat him up this time. Before him stood a girl his age with long brown hair, tied up into a pony tail by a green ribbon, and bright emerald eyes. She bent down and her small fingers picked up the ball. She brushed the dirt off it and held it out to Gaara. "Do you want to play with me?"_

_She grinned at him as Gaara's eyes widened. Never had someone asked him if they wanted to play with him, not even his siblings. But those seven simple words made his heart pound with hope. Slowly he nodded and took the ball. The girls grin broadened and she stood out her hand for him to shake._

_"My name's Mayumi. What's your's?" She asked brightly. He looked down at her hand and after a while slipped his hand into hers._

_"Gaara." He simple said. Mayumi smiled again and ran a few meters away from him._

_"Let's play then!" She looked at him and waited for him to kick the ball. And waited. And waited. She sighed. "You do know how to play right? We just kick the ball back and forth." __Gaara looked blankly at the ball and placed it on the ground, and lightly tapped it. He watched as it rolled a few inches. "No! Kick it harder!"_

_He looked at it again and this time lifted his foot back to kicked it. A cloud of dust went up as it whizzed straight towards Mayumi. Her eyes went wide as it hurtled into her stomach. She coughed and rubbed her stomach. Gaara winced and backed away slowly with wide eyes. When ever he hurt someone he was always punished by his father. The punishment was always harsh and left many scars. The images of his punishments were permanently burned into his mind to remind him that they treated him like a monster. What he didn't expect was for Mayumi to flash him a giant smile._

_"That was so cool! You have a powerful kick. But maybe calm it down a bit." She said happily and kicked the ball back with the perfect amount of force, so it stopped dead at Gaara's feet. He nodded and tried again. This time it was much better. Mayumi still had to run behind her to get but there were no injures. For ages they just kicked the ball back and fourth until Gaara could do it perfectly. They played until the sun started to set and they said their could byes. When Mayumi left Gaara stared after her trying savour the image of her smile. The smile that warmed his heart and made him feel happy._

_They played together many more times. Each time playing a different game and their friendship grew stronger. Mayumi would teach the new game to Gaara and they would lay it for hours until it was so dark they could barely see three feet in front of them. They would then say goodbye and he would trudge back home. The only thing that help him through the tension and hatred towards him, at the family dinner, was the thought that he would see her smile again the next day._

_While Garra walked to the playground to meet Mayumi some older kids were on the path up ahead. They looked fierce and tough, but didn't seem to pay attention to him. He looked wearily at them but carried on going. Just as he was about to pass them suddenly one of them put their hand on his chest and shoved him backwards. They sneered at him._

_"What ya doing round here? You know you're not welcome." The one who pushed him was the biggest and seemed to be the leader._

_"You're a monster." Another jeered. They all laughed as they saw tears in his eyes._

_Suddenly someone kicked the leader from behind in the groin and dodge round them to face Gaara. Their emerald eyes were wide with fear as they grab his hand and pulled him up._

_"Gaara. Run!" Mayumi cried as the bullies helped their leader._

_"What did you do to him, you brat!?" One demanded as the made a swoop towards them. Mayumi step away in terror._

_She had no time to think. She pulled Gaara away from them and did what her instincts told her to. Run. Their little feet pounded against the floor as they tried to out run the bullies. Gaara could barely take in his surroundings as they blurred past. But what he could take in was Mayumi's fear. He felt her little hand in his shaking as she weaved in and out of the crowds. His heart ached as thought of her. She had helped him away from the bullies even though she was scared herself. No one had done that before. Their legs ached so much but they had to keep running. They darted round a corned and into an ally and collided into a metal wired fence. The two whizzed round to try and back track but they were stuck. The bullies had blocked the entrance to the ally and there was no other way out. Gaara's heart nearly stopped and he squeezed Mayumi's hand for support. The bullies' eyes were full of rage and fury and they wanted revenge. They want the two dead. Gaara looked over at Mayumi who had started to shake from head to toe. He'd been beaten many times before but he couldn't let Mayumi get beaten. Even with his little legs shaking he stepped in front of her and put his arms out._

_"Argh. Look. I think he monster wants to protect his girlfriend." One bully said mimicking a baby's voice, but then turned back to normal as her cracked his knuckles. "Well we don't want you to feel left out so will beat her up too."_

_Gaara suddenly felt a small pair of hands on his shoulders and pushed him down and around. Next think he knew Mayumi was pushing him through a gap in the fence. He looked at her and she urged him forwards with a small smile. He slipped through with ease and turned back to help Mayumi. She was already half way through but before he could help her she was yanked back with a scream._

_"Oh no you don't." One bully said as he pulled he into the air by her hair. Gaara looked at him in shock and tried to get back through the fence. But it was too late. She was flown against the wall where she slid down to a heap on the floor. There another bully picked her by the neck and slapped her across the face again and again. Her legs were struggling to kick them but with no effect. Her finger nails clawed at their hands and made them bleed but their iron grasp wouldn't let go. They then punched her and she went flying to the wall again. Just as she hit the floor they all surrounded her and began kicking her stomach. Through out it she had been whimpering and screaming but no adult came to help. They never did when Gaara was around. She began coughing blood but the bullies kept going. Soon her cries in pain stopped and her body didn't react the kicks anymore. It was just flung about like a rag doll. Gaara's fists became clenched and he started shaking._

_"Stop it." He said deeply. The bullies looked at him and laughed. "I said STOP IT!"_

_Gaara cried out in anger and there was a sudden explosion behind him. Dust flow everywhere and got the attention of the bullies. Only they wish that hadn't looked. Gaara's eyes were cold and hard as they watched the shocked bullies. At that moment his eyes burned right through their souls and left them bare. At the same time his glare was so icy cold they felt trapped. The wind whipped around fiercely as all the sand began moving to his will. The sand surround the bullies and trapped them in a miniature sandstorm as they cried out for him to stop. Their eyes were pleading for him to stop but to them he was a monster. And monsters didn't take pity. The sand hungered for blood as it rapidly ripping away bits of their skin off, from all over their bodies. The wounds were painful as sand got into them and they became covered in them. Even after their screams subsided Gaara did not stop. All that drove him on were his instincts. His hatred for them was written all over his face. He hated them for what they did to Mayumi. He clenched his fist as hard as he could until blood started to drip down. The blood that boiled with revenge and wanted nothing more than to see them dead. They would have been dead if everything hadn't abruptly dropped._

_ He only stopped when he saw movement coming from Mayumi. The second he saw her move the wind dropped and the sand vanished. He rushed to her side and gently lifted her head into his lap. When he saw her face he nearly fainted. It was covered in red marks and dirt. There were cuts all over it from where the bullies' rings had caught her. And the blood. There was so much. There was a wound on her forehead which looked really bad and looked like it wouldn't stop bleeding. Her nose was bleeding and running down her face and her chin was covered in it from where she had coughed up blood._

_Gaara carefully brushed her hair that had come loose and into her face away behind her ear. Slowly she opened her eyes. They were shining since they were full of tears. She smiled a tender smile._

_"They didn't hurt you did they?" Her voice was croaky and strained. Gaara's eyes went wide and he couldn't find any words to say. So he just shook his head. Even after they had beaten up she still was more worried about him. "Good. Then can you promise me something. Don't use your powers to hurt people like that again. I don't want them to think you're a monster."_

_Carefully she lifted her right hand up and stuck out her pinky. Gaara looked at his eyes nearly weld up. He rubbed them and hooked her pinky with his. His lips tweaked up into a small smile as they made their pinky promise. _

* * *

Gaara walked away from the training grounds and home with his brother and sister. Only recently had his siblings started to accept him, but they were closer than any other siblings. They walked past many villagers again and the bunch of kids who got under everyone's feet. They walked past many shops and homes. They walked past the playground when something caught Gaara's eye.

"It's a shame you can't remember that girl's name. You guys were close." Temari said as she picked up their earlier conversation.

Gaara didn't say anything as he stared into the park. He stopped and let Kankuro and Temari walk on, saying he would be home after them. He looked at all the kids playing with the ball and laughing. Then he looked at the swing in the corner and his eyes grew wide. Sat there was a girl his age with long brown hair, let loose this time and it tumbled down her back with two green ribbons in her bangers, and bright emerald eyes. His lips tweaked into the small smile he's only ever shown three times. All when thinking about that girl. Slowly he began to walk over to her.

His brother and sister were wrong. He would never forget her name.

"Mayumi."

* * *

**So what did you think? Put it in the reviews!**

**I wrote this in a couple of hours but I just haven't come round to uploading it yet. I thought I would add extra stuff to it but I like it the way it is. Wow I can't believe I just used the word 'stuff'. All my teachers have always drilled it into mine and my classmates heads that using that word is a writing sin. Oh well it's my fanfic I can do what I want. *Muhahahahaha. Again please put any really good fanfics in the reviews. I would like to read as many as possible.**


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